There Can Be Only One
by TL-chan
Summary: [Post-movie] On a peaceful day, Bayfront City is hit with a severe storm. But the perpetrator of this incident was Dr. Karigari?
1. Chapter 1

**AN:** Well, since this fandom is pretty much my personal playground now (sad as that sounds), thought I'd take a stab at posting something longer than a one-shot. Although this is set post-movie, and could be considered canon-compliant as of now, if there's ever another season (which I think is possible), I'm sure it will be horribly contradicted, so I'm considering it a canon-divergent AU. I just love this ship, and while it probably will never happen in canon, it's fun to write anyway.

A note pertaining to this particular chapter. First Kitchen (which is Wendys in Japan) did an actual Drive Head promotion. They really gave out coloring pages, but I changed it to toys here. I don't know if the chain exists for real in the Drive Head universe, but I felt like throwing it in.

* * *

Ch1-

It was recently announced that First Kitchen was having a Drive Head promotion. It was a simple fast food restaurant for families. Nothing gourmet on the menu. But if you ordered a kids meal during a limited period, you would get a Drive Head toy. That was the extent of how popular and beloved the Drive Heads were with the people of Japan, especially their hometown of Bayfront City.

Well, there was no rule that one had to be a child to order the kids meal. Even if there was, that wasn't going to stop Sasagawa from trying. During lunch break on the first day of the promotion, she was relieved to find that there were no sudden disasters occurring that required her attention, so she rushed to the nearest restaurant.

* * *

"White Crystal Hope?" She sighed. The toy she got was random. Well, White Crystal Hope was still nice, but it wasn't Cyclone Interceptor.

'Oh well. I'll just order another.' It was fine in theory, but the line was already quite long, there being many kids excited over the promotion, and it was a day when schools were closed. She would have to get back to work eventually. Sasagawa didn't suppose anyone who had gotten Cyclone wanted to trade with her. But maybe if she was lucky. She looked around the restaurant, where families were already sitting at tables. It was extremely crowded. There probably wasn't even an empty table for her to sit at, as is.

It was then when she spotted something which was completely unexpected. At one table for four, near the corner wall and a bit out of sight, some familiar people were sitting. There was an empty seat, even, because only three were in use.

Sasagawa was so excited that for a moment, she lost interest in collecting Drive Head toys. She rushed over to see them.

"Dr. Karigari! What are you doing here?" Her hands were clasped together and her face lit up. What, indeed, was he doing there, though? Certainly he wasn't interested in Drive Head toys. And, she couldn't imagine he particularly cared for fast food. So, was there some larger purpose?

"…Miss…" Karigari could only stare at her in disbelief for a moment. He hadn't expected to encounter her any more than she'd expected to encounter him. For a moment though, practicality overwrote his intense shock. "Could you please not announce my presence here?"

It was rather noisy, and probably no one was paying any attention. But still, he was a wanted criminal out in public.

"Uh… I'm sorry," Sasagawa replied. She knew she shouldn't have. The realization actually sinking in, her eyes darted down at the floor.

"It's fine," Karigari replied. Even though he was barely looking up at her, he could tell from her reaction that she felt guilty.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" Sasagawa asked. Just looking at Karigari and his subordinates, there was a lot she wanted to ask. Aside from the mystery of why they were there to begin with, the biggest twist was that Yusuke and Akira looked normal for the first time in months.

"Go ahead," Yusuke answered before Karigari even could.

"Thank you," said Sasagawa. She sat next to Karigari, who was alone on one side of the table. She didn't notice how flustered Karigari was, her gaze still focused on his subordinates.

"It's so great to be able to eat here again," Akira said. He and Yusuke had a large plate of burgers in front of them, which they were downing.

"How did you eat before?" Sasagawa wondered. They had bodies, but their heads weren't attached. Certainly, they had to get nourishment from somewhere though, or they would die. At least she thought so. She wasn't sure how being beheaded worked.

"Eh… it wasn't fun," Yusuke replied. "But now that Doctor finally got our heads fixed, he said we could have a real meal. And this is great!"

"I'm glad," Sasagawa replied. Well, at least it was starting to make sense to her.

"Apparently, their idea of a real meal is cheap and unhealthy fast food," Karigari spoke. The disdain in his voice made it obvious he was not in agreement.

"But it tastes so good," Yusuke replied.

"Yeah," Akira agreed.

"I guess so," Sasagawa said. She realized she hadn't even eaten any of her food. It was going to get cold. And while she didn't mind fast food, she didn't particularly want it anyway. "You can have mine too if you like," she offered.

"Really?" Akira asked. He was about to grab for it, but Yusuke stopped him.

"You can't take it. That's hers."

"It's fine," Sasagawa replied. "I only came for Drive Head. And I didn't get Cyclone anyway." She frowned.

"Okay, good," said Akira, who proceeded to take her burger.

"Drive Head…" Karigari muttered. He couldn't say the words without twitching. "I expected as much. I did believe you had finer taste in food than this dump, Miss."

"Umm… well… it's not my favorite," Sasagawa replied. "But it isn't that terrible."

"Doctor just wanted to go out for steak," Akira said. "But this is more fun."

Sasagawa smiled.

"But you went here because you wanted to make your subordinates happy. That's really nice of you."

Karigari turned his head away from her, trying to cover up how much of a wreck he probably looked like. He hated to admit that her compliments could destroy him from elation on the spot. And the situation was uncomfortable for him to begin with.

Sasagawa tilted her head.

"Are you alright, Dr. Karigari?" That he was being so quiet and distant was a little disappointing to her. They had been talking a bit more than usual recently, mostly by e-mail but occasionally in person. Yet, Karigari still had a tendency to avoid her. She knew he was rather awkward and always preoccupied. She found that rather endearing. But still, she couldn't help but wonder if she was a bother to him.

"Yes. Fine," he answered. If he could, he would have ran away immediately. Which was stupid of him, he knew. And he was supposed to be a genius. But had he been given time to prepare for meeting Miss, maybe he would know what to say and do. Although, probably not. He was utterly hopeless around her. He knew he should really just savor this chance encounter, even if the setting was as uncivilized as could be.

"That's good," Sasagawa replied. She wasn't entirely sure if he'd meant it, but there was no point in prodding too much. She'd have to just take his answer at face value. But, well… before she had to run off and go back to work, she still wanted to talk with him a little more.

"By the way, you didn't happen to get any kids meals, did you?" Okay, so talking about Drive Head wasn't the best idea, but it was the first thought that came to her mind, looking at all the food they'd collectively ordered.

"Nah," Yusuke said. "We wanted the biggest portions."

"I guess so," Sasagwa replied. "But if you ever get a Cyclone Interceptor, could I please have it?"

"Sure," replied Yusuke. "What would we do with it?"

"I could get you one right now if you'd like," Karigari spoke.

"Yes!" she exclaimed, her whole face glowing with happiness. "But… do you really want to wait on that line?"

"If you wish it," he answered. For her reaction, it was worth a hellish line. "Alternatively, I could just send them."

"Hey! We're still eating!" Akira exclaimed. Both looked unhappy with the request.

"It's okay," Sasagawa replied. "I can come back another day. But… I can't wait to have that Cyclone toy! It looks like the new Force Field Mode. Have you seen it?! My Cyclone had a blue glow! It's never been cooler!"

"I've certainly seen it," Karigari replied. Even more up-close than she'd seen it, being the one who actually developed the Force Field Mode. "For once, it's something I consider worthy."

"You like it?" Sasagawa wondered. Of course she adored it, but that was a surprise, coming from Karigari who hated the Mobile Rescue Police.

"It's work of my caliber," he answered. He wanted to explain to her that he was the one who made it. He knew it would please her. But at the same time, he felt it wasn't worth it. He didn't want her to care only because he worked on her precious Cyclone. Really, he understood that Sasagawa loved Drive Head way more than she cared about him, but he liked to delude himself that this wasn't the case. It was a double-edged sword.

Well, Karigari certainly didn't regret what he'd done with Cyclone. He'd gotten ample revenge on the Mobile Rescue Police, who obviously couldn't have saved the world without him. And, he'd made Sasagawa happier in the process.

"I thought so too!" Sasagawa exclaimed, much to Karigari's surprise. "When my Cyclone rushed in, and defeated that mysterious giant monster, it was like nothing I've seen before. That was the sort of miracle you could pull off."

"That wasn't a giant monster, you know," Karigari said. Asserting his knowledge was the only way he could think to react.

"What was it?" Sasagawa wondered.

"An android," Karigari replied. "Well, it was at the time. Before that, it was an AI, who was threatening to destroy mankind." He folded his arms. "It's a long and complicated story. One best not discussed around so many people. But if we were to go some place more private, I could explain the secret to you."

"But I want to know now," Sasagawa replied. "How did you find all this out? Have you known about this for a long time?"

"I told you, Miss, it's extremely confidential. That's why even the Mobile Rescue Police have been covering up the truth for months. Although I suppose they might reveal it sooner or later. I'll let you know before then, however…"

"Sure," Sasagawa interrupted. "Why don't we go to the steak restaurant like you wanted? Or is that also too public? But it can't be today. I'd better get back to work soon. When are you free?"

Karigari held out his finger, signaling for her to stop talking a mile a minute and let him think.

"It should be more quiet there," Karigari answered. "But there may not be a truly private place in this world. Even one of my hideouts was exposed, a mere casualty in achieving my revenge. Of course, I have another in the works."

"Really? Where?" Akira asked.

"I can't announce that here," Karigari said, scowling at him.

"I'd love to see your new hideout!" Sasagawa exclaimed.

"Perhaps one day you will," Karigari answered. "As for when and where we should meet, I'll have to get back to you on that."

"Alright," Sasagawa said. She didn't let it show, but she was rather disappointed. And not just because she wanted to learn Karigari's secrets. "Are you busy?"

"Always," Karigari replied. "Busy with building my new hideout, for one." The truth was that his mind was working double just to process the fact that Sasagawa wanted to meet him in private, and even suggested going to a nice restaurant like he wanted. If not for the fact that he was a genius, he wasn't sure he could _ever_ process that. "I'll certainly make time for you, Miss," he added. "I just need to keep my schedule flexible. And if we were to make plans in this public place, who knows who might overhear?"

It looked like mostly kids and their families, who were minding their own business. But Sasagawa supposed that wanted criminals had to be careful.

"Sure," she answered. "But please let me know. I'm really looking forward to seeing you again." It was always a highlight of her day, and this day was no exception. When she got back to work, she knew she'd still be in a good mood, even though she never managed to get her new Cyclone toy.

* * *

Sasagawa placed the White Crystal Hope toy down on her desk. She had to quickly check e-mails to make sure nothing important had came up while she was away. But she doubted it, as no one had called her directly.

Moments later, she was approached by Unai.

"Sempai, did you get Cyclone Interceptor?" Unai asked.

"No," Sasagawa replied. "But I definitely will tomorrow."

"Oh," Unai replied, surprised. "I thought you did for sure, given how content you look."

Sasagawa shook her head.

"Actually, I met a friend by chance."

"You mean Dr. Karigari?" Unai wondered.

"Uh…" Sasagawa's first instinct was to deny it. But she realized how transparent that would seem when all she could do was gape at first. "Do I make it that obvious?" she asked softly.

"Well, ever since he came back to the city, you've been talking about him a lot," Unai said.

Sasagawa supposed that was true. Of course, when she had to keep it a secret that he was still alive for months, she tried her best not to mention him at all. Although it still wasn't entirely public knowledge that Karigari was around, she was relieved to be able to at least mention him around her friends now. Of course, casually talking about a wanted criminal was pretty bizarre, especially in a positive light. She did acknowledge that and still tried not to go overboard. But, she probably wasn't the best at not gushing about the things that meant a lot to her.

"Is he plotting anything?" Unai wondered.

"I don't think so," Sasagawa replied. He did mention something about his revenge at the restaurant, but in past tense. Of course, she hoped he was done with all of that. It had been a long time since he'd done anything dangerous that she had known about. But she'd be lying if in the back of her head, she didn't worry at all about him doing something wrong.

"It's just odd that he hasn't made a move in so long, if he really was alive," Unai said. "But, if you don't think he would, then I believe you, Sempai."

"I know," Sasagawa replied. "But, Dr. Karigari definitely isn't a bad person. I trust him." She had to trust him. Since the day they met, he proved that he didn't really want to hurt anyone. And then he saved her life, twice. He nearly died to save the entire world from that strange threat at the Tower of Babel, and in the process lost his eye and hand, and almost the lives of his important subordinates. As complicated a person as Karigari was, he was a truly admirable hero.

"Sasagawa!" One of her higher-ups came into the room, seemingly quite concerned.

"Yes?" she replied.

"Hurricane force winds have been hitting parts of the city," he spoke. "Already, it's shaping into a disaster. You need to head there right now."

"I understand," she replied. Hurricanes, though? That was pretty weird, when she thought about it. It was sunny just before, and the weather had only been calling for more sun all week. Well, it wasn't really out of season, and disasters always happened in Bayfront City. Fortunately, they had Team Drive Head to make sure everyone was rescued during those disasters. She was positive that they would soon be arriving on the scene as well, and that naturally excited her. She couldn't get her new toy of Force Field Mode Cyclone, but at least she could watch the real deal.

As instructed, Sasagawa headed out to the coordinates by helicopter.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch2-

"This is Sasagawa on the scene."

She began reporting as usual, her cameraman who always accompanied her filming. But there was nothing usual about the situation. Buildings were torn through, glass and broken cement lining the streets. Cars were turned over. No one was prepared for this sudden storm. She only hoped there were no casualties, but could the people who were caught up in it without warning really be that lucky?

"A hurricane which went unpredicted by meteorologists suddenly hit the southern business district of Bayfront City. However, Team Drive Head should be arriving any minute now."

As if on queue, Cyclone Interceptor and Master Backdraft soared down from the sky. Beneath them, two Transporters rolled in. From them emerged White Crystal Hope and White Pearl Hope. One of the Transporters also converted to its Walker Vehicle form.

"My Cyclone! It's here!" Already, Sasagawa was much more confident about the situation.

As an unoccupied car was swept up by the hurricane winds, Cyclone jumped in front of it. The Drive Head was strong enough to grasp the car, pulling it away. He set it down in a parking lot a short distance away.

As the wind then slammed against an apartment building which was atop a store, it was fortunate that it wasn't still carrying the heavy car.

A quick scan from White Crystal Hope's Cyber Eye Unit made it clear that there were still a number of people inside the buildings. Whether trapped there or simply too terrified to go outside and flee, it was vital for them to be evacuated.

From a safe distance, Sasagawa watched carefully. It appeared that White Pearl Hope and Cyclone Interceptor were focusing on getting all loose objects away from the scene. Which was quite a workload. Many people had abandoned their cars and fled while they had the chance.

Meanwhile, Crystal Hope and the Transporter Gaia were working to bring all those who were within the buildings to containers, where they could be taken somewhere safe, or to a hospital if need be. Sadly, there were quite a lot of people suffering injuries already.

On top of the hurricane winds, a fire had already broken out as well. It seemed to have been the result of a power line being knocked down, the wires striking a building. Master Backdraft was focused on putting out the fire, but of course, because of the winds, it was spreading rapidly and was hard to tame. But, as a Drive Head, he was managing better than most.

"It looks like the Drive Heads have finished with the evacuation!" Sasagawa cheered. That was a great sign. Crystal Hope had begun helping its twin unit in the cleaning process, and Cyclone then switched to helping in putting out the fire.

"The fire will be out soon! The sudden storm even looks to be calming down!" The wind had become much less intense. Being up in the helicopter, Sasagawa had felt quite a lot of turbulence the whole time.

It wasn't long before the last bit of flames evaporated into the air. The scene looked far from pretty. But it was at last calm. The rescue was complete.

"They did it! Thank you, Team Drive Head!"

The Drive Heads and Transporters soon took off from the scene, heading back to headquarters as usual. Sasagawa and her crew headed back as well.

* * *

By the time Sasagawa returned to the office, there was already a minor panic occurring. Lots of people running around, seemingly scrambling to get something done. There weren't any higher-ups to be seen. They were all in a closed room, talking.

'What's going on?' she wondered.

She made her way to her own desk. There was no one over there, so it was quieter. But she wasn't sure that was a good thing.

Rather than going to bother anyone, Sasagawa thought she should check her mail first. Maybe someone messaged her to explain whatever it was that happened while she was on air.

Indeed, there was a new mail. But almost as soon as she opened it, her head was spinning with more questions. It read:

 _'To the press, and especially to the Members of the Mobile Rescue Police:_

 _I suppose you would be wondering about the hurricane which just struck a portion of Bayfront City. It was no coincidence, and I can assure you that there was but one explanation to it. It was my doing. And this is only the beginning. You should all beware, until I've gotten ample revenge. Let the whole city know that no one is safe from the Genius Scientist Dr. Karigari.'_

"That's impossible!" Sasagawa closed it right away. Her hand tightened on the mouse involuntarily.

All she wanted was to convince herself that this was all fake. That Karigari didn't send that message. Sure, he was capable of it. Sure, he did want to get revenge on the Mobile Rescue Police, like the letter said. She'd just seen him in person, though. Could he have done something that fast? But this storm was much too destructive. It wasn't like him. At least, she thought so, but…

Her immediate instinct was to ask Karigari directly. He could lie to her, she realized, but she had to at least ask. Rather than sending a reply to that message, which she still didn't want to think came from Karigari at all, she opened a new mail and sent it to him.

' _Dr. Karigari, what was the cause of that hurricane? I have to know.'_

She hit send

It wasn't long after when Unai came into the room. Seeing that Sasagawa was glaring at the computer screen and repetitively refreshing her e-mails, it was easy enough to deduct that she'd seen the message.

"Do you know if it's true?" Unai asked.

"It's wrong!" Sasagawa replied. "But I don't know who sent that mail and why."

"Well… we're still going to make an emergency broadcast about this," Unai said. "That was the decision. He did say that he would attack again."

There was a second e-mail that came in from the station executive moments ago, declaring those plans. They had apparently cleared the decision with the Mobile Rescue Police. That mail, Sasagawa had hardly paid any attention to.

"Are you going to make the announcement?" Unai asked. "Because, if you won't, I could…"

"No, it's fine," Sasagawa replied. "We did receive a threat. It would be wrong not to warn people. It's my responsibility to do so and there's no reason I can't. But that won't stop me from finding out the truth either."

She got up from her desk, but stared at the computer screen for a moment before leaving the room.

* * *

When Karigari did receive that e-mail, he wasn't entirely sure what to make of it. He did think that the hurricane which came out of nowhere was odd. It crossed his mind that it wasn't even natural to begin with. Well, that was more than likely the case. The weather was annoying and unpredictable, but hurricane force winds that hadn't even come in from the sea just appearing one day were something that transcended the ordinary type of odd.

Even if it were some sort of orchestrated threat, well.., the Mobile Rescue Police could take care of it. It was their job to rescue people from disasters, not his. And they did take care of it. Perhaps if these storms persisted and caused a wider scale of damage, then he would be forced to step in. But for now, it wasn't really his concern.

Still, Karigari was pleased that Sasagawa asked him about it. Unfortunately, he couldn't answer her. He didn't even have a guess yet as to who made it. But now, he supposed it was worth finding out. As a plus, if he had more information, he could hold that against the idiotic Mobile Rescue Police who probably didn't have the slightest clue about the truth, even if they suspected something was off. He hoped they weren't that stupid to think the incident was natural, though it wouldn't have completely shocked him if they did.

Just as Karigari was about to sit down at his computer and begin some research, his subordinates came into the room.

"Doctor, Miss is on TV!" Yusuke exclaimed.

"What?" She wasn't supposed to be on at this time. Unless there was another disaster already, which would mean this person worked absurdly fast. Or it was unrelated, and just a striking coincidence. Well, the reason didn't matter. He had to go and see.

After scrambling to the other room, he could see that she was indeed on TV, but wasn't at the scene of any sort of disaster. Rather, she was delivering an emergency report.

"We received a message at Akasaka TV just an hour ago, concerning the hurricane winds which struck a portion of the city. According to the information, this afternoon's disaster was not a natural occurrence. Rather, it was an orchestrated incident by the infamous wanted criminal Dr. Karigari."

"What?!… That's…" Karigari couldn't even find the words to say. His mouth was left hanging open.

"Seriously?" Akira asked. He and Yusuke were looking at their boss in shock.

"I did no such thing!" Karigari exclaimed, annoyed at them. "If I had caused it, I would hope the two of you would know about it. However, I did not!"

On the TV screen, the contents of the letter came up.

"How did they get proof?" Yusuke wondered.

"It was forged, obviously," Karigari replied, though he was twitching furiously, already working his mind in overdrive to try and get to the bottom of this.

"But Miss believes it?" Akira asked, sounding a little shocked.

"No," Karigari replied. That was one thing he at least could be confident about. "She's only doing what she's told. Miss sent me a mail before, asking who really caused the hurricane. Now I understand why, at least. Regardless, this is inexcusable!" He turned off the TV.

"I wanted to watch more!" Yusuke exclaimed.

Karigari really didn't care.

"If I actually caused such an incident, I would have gone about it completely differently. I hope no one in this city is idiotic enough to believe that it was my doing. Firstly, I would have made a declaration to the Mobile Rescue Police so that they could prepare for a game, which I would have won anyway, but what fun would it be if the opposition wasn't trying their hardest, showing off all their flashy new machines that can never compare to mine? Secondly, I wouldn't have done something so carelessly destructive. I create disasters, but I don't leave casualties. That imposter's plan lacks any aesthetic of my own. He didn't even get my name right. That's 'the Number One Genius Scientist in Space'! But that's fine. If people are seriously going to believe that I could have done this, I'll simply track the real culprit down and teach him a lesson."

"No way anyone could believe it," Yusuke said. Akira nodded.

"You underestimate the foolishness of mankind as a whole," Karigari replied. "I am a wanted criminal, I have toyed with the weather a number of times, I would boast about it had I been responsible. The imposter didn't get everything wrong. No, his biggest misstep was believing that I wouldn't expose the truth and utterly humiliate him despite his efforts. I imagine he's extremely confident, wherever he's hiding right now, thinking he's just about won." Karigari was seething. "But, the fact that he chose to use my name to win might even be worth taking as a compliment. If I wasn't so offended by his idiocy and everything else. What an irritating situation this has become."

"So how are you going to expose him?" Akira asked.

"Maybe you can get Miss to announce what really happened on TV too," Yusuke suggested.

"The first step is finding out his real identity," Karigari replied. For now, he didn't really want to drag Sasagawa into it. She shouldn't have to say anything that could threaten her own career. And, it was his problem, not hers. "We have work to do."

* * *

Not long after Sasagawa had finished filming that segment, Akasaka TV was being bombarded with calls and e-mails from concerned viewers. Mostly requests which would have better been sent to the Mobile Rescue Police, though she suspected they were probably getting a similar flow of calls.

While it wasn't Sasagawa's responsibility to take the calls, that didn't stop her from overhearing bits of the conversations. It was only serving to frustrate her more.

'Dr. Karigari, please answer me…' she thought to herself. But much as she refreshed her computer, or checked her phone, she wasn't getting any sort of reply.

"I take it you haven't heard from him?" Unai asked.

Sasagawa shook her head. She looked defeated.

"If Dr. Karigari knows anything about this… And I'm sure he does by now, he must be looking into it already." She couldn't expect a reply if he was too busy. Realizing that helped to keep her somewhat composed.

"Or, if he was responsible…" Unai started, though she quickly stopped herself, reluctant to disagree with her sempai.

"He wasn't," Sasagawa replied. "Unai-chan, there were a number of casualties because of that hurricane. Dr. Karigari wouldn't have allowed that to happen!"

"But he is a dangerous criminal," Unai replied. "Even if he is your friend, you can't insist he would never do something wrong."

"I know that…" She looked at the floor, her fist clenched tightly. "But… not this time. It has to be someone else! I'm going to find them myself."

"Alright," Unai said. She wasn't sure what Sasagawa would be able to find, but she wasn't going to try and dissuade her. "Good luck."

* * *

Sasagawa was glad once she could go home for the night. Well, if some incident were to come up, she would still be on call to cover it. But other than that, there was nothing for her to do.

She had been trying her hardest to stay composed since she'd gotten that mail. To not say anything, to not correct anyone, to just treat this as a normal incident. She'd managed to do that perfectly. None of her colleagues other than Unai seemed to have a clue that she disagreed with them. Enough people warned her to be careful as she was leaving, whom she just had to thank politely.

She threw herself down on the bed once she'd made it home. She wasn't really tired, but it was late. She had to try and get some rest.

'I'll have to go and see the Mobile Rescue Police tomorrow…' she thought to herself. 'They've faced Dr. Karigari directly for a long time. They'll definitely understand. And if anyone knows something about the truth, it's them.'

At least, she had to believe that. It was the best chance she had for now.

Sasagawa rubbed at her eyes. Tears, she hadn't expected. She was stressed, she knew. But she hadn't realized quite how stressed until then.

The last time she'd cried herself to sleep was the night of the Tower of Babel incident. That was the night she believed that Karigari had died.

'Why does he matter so much to me? He's a criminal.'

All she ever loved was Drive Head. Even now, she was surrounded by the massive collection of figures and other merchandise she'd acquired over time. The Drive Heads were heroes. They were supposed to be loved. Even if she was right, and Karigari had nothing to do with this incident, that didn't mean he'd never done anything wrong. Could the heroic things he'd done really erase that? Unai had a point.

Sasagawa checked her phone once more. She still hadn't gotten a reply. It was no surprise, really.


	3. Chapter 3

Ch3-

Much to Karigari's irritation, his searching from the previous day hadn't landed him with any promising results. Well, he knew there wasn't much to go by. Only that the enemy must have had access to some powerful resources, if he could fabricate hurricane-strength winds. But there were still so many ways of getting the access. Self-producing them, stealing them, perhaps having ties with the military or government and using those resources. Maybe he was simply someone very rich, who hired a second person to create them for him. Every channel Karigari searched turned up even more possibilities.

He did have one other idea, though it bothered him to have to consider it. But that was to acquire information from the Mobile Rescue Police. Not to ask them, of course. But, the hidden cameras that he had linked to their headquarters would definitely come in handy in this case. Given that the Mobile Rescue Police received the imposter's letter, they were likely analyzing it. Likely not finding anything of value, Karigari thought, because they were idiots. But if he could piggyback off of what they'd found so far, it might get him a little further than the nowhere he was at now. So that was his best bet.

* * *

After recording a few things in the morning, such as her Fortune Corner, Sasagawa had requested some brief time off. Fortunately, that request was granted. And she used that time to rush to the Mobile Rescue Police headquarters.

* * *

"We've been really swamped, you know?" Despite Kurumada's words, he and Saionji agreed to meet with Sasagawa in the command room.

"I understand," Sasagawa replied. Which hadn't stopped her from begging the staff for twenty minutes until someone put her in contact with either of the two of them.

* * *

Karigari frowned as he watched the visuals from his camera.

'Miss… you went to them?'

It was obvious why, though. For the same reason, he was spying on them. They were the most likely people to have some sort of clue. And it was true that Sasagawa did ask him first. He just chose not to answer her. Well, he didn't want her involved, but he also wasn't surprised that she wasn't going to stop there. Which left him with one option.

"You two…" Karigari turned to face Akira and Yusuke. "Go and find Miss. Bring her to the hideout so we can talk."

"But, isn't the hideout a secret?" Akira asked.

"Yes," Karigari replied. "Right now, that's not the issue. It's simply the most private place. Besides, the next hideout will be finished soon. Now do as I say!"

Personally, he needed to keep watching. He'd have to trust his subordinates to not screw up this time.

* * *

"You came here because of Karigari, didn't you?" Kurumada asked. He knew that he had some sort of ties with Sasagawa. That had been clear since she'd delivered the virus he developed. But as for what those ties were, he didn't really know or want to know. However, Kurumada also doubted that Karigari would send her as a messenger in this case. She must have come of her own volition.

"Yes," Sasagawa replied. "That mail… he wasn't the one who sent it!"

"I know that," Kurumada replied.

Sasagawa sighed in relief.

"At the very least, it doesn't seem like he would have sent it," said Kurumada.

"However, someone did send that mail. And on top of that, they attacked the city yesterday and caused a major incident," Saionji said. "Because of that, we have to do everything in our power to find out who it was and bring them to justice."

Kurumada nodded. "If we could, we'd take Karigari in for questioning."

* * *

"As if you could manage that!" Karigari was raging just from listening. He at least appreciated the fact that they didn't suspect him either, though.

* * *

"I want to prove Karigari's innocence," Sasagawa said. "You may believe he wasn't responsible, as do I, but everyone else suspects him."

"It's no surprise," said Saionji. "He was the one who signed that message, supposedly. And the encoding on it is pretty complex. We still haven't figured out the source where it came from."

"That's the kind of thing Karigari is capable of doing," Kurumada said. "And that nutjob has caused all sorts of trouble for us. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if he attacked us again someday. I'm almost looking forward to it, just so that we can catch him and shut him up for good."

* * *

"Kurumada, you will pay for this!" Watching this was not good for Karigari's blood pressure, and what was the point when he'd learned already that they didn't figure out a thing from the e-mail? Amateurs.

* * *

"So, you don't have any idea who might have really sent it," Sasagawa spoke. She was quite disappointed.

"Unfortunately, no," Kurumada replied. "But we're still looking."

"Please let me know if you find something," Sasagawa said.

"Listen, this is a very confidential matter," Saionji replied. "And potentially very dangerous. Even though your intentions may be good, we can't bring any outsiders into this case."

"But…" Sasagawa wanted to argue, but wasn't sure what to say. She knew that she wasn't a member of the Mobile Rescue Police (disappointingly), and she was lucky just to have gotten the chance to speak with them.

"Try not to worry," Kurumada said. "Eventually, we are going to get to the bottom of this. And more than likely, Karigari is trying to do the same thing. The truth will come out, whatever that may be."

"Alright," Sasagawa replied. Though disappointed that she still hadn't figured out a thing, it was at least reassuring to find that Kurumada and Saionji were on her side.

Sasagawa headed out of the control room. She noticed that outside the door, Kurumada's son, Gou was waiting. Was he listening in? Well, it didn't really matter.

"Sasagawa-san… hi," he said, nervously.

"Hi," she waved back, and left.

* * *

Sasagawa hadn't made it very far on her way back to the office when she heard someone calling her name. Well, they were calling her "Miss", which easily narrowed down who it was.

Akira and Yusuke were hiding in an alley behind a building. It wasn't surprising that they didn't want to be seen, especially now that the entire city was on guard for their boss. Anyway, it was great to see them.

"What's going on?" she asked once she had gotten closer to them.

"Doctor is mad because you went to see the Mobile Rescue Police, I think," Yusuke said.

"I don't think he's mad about that," Akira replied. "He was mad already."

"Who knows? But he says he needs to talk to you," Yusuke said.

"In the secret hideout," Akira added. "That's a really big deal. He doesn't want anyone seeing it."

"Really?" Sasagawa asked. That was the best news she'd heard all day. Of course she was excited because she really wanted to see his hideout. But more than that, she had finally gotten the reply she wanted. In dramatic Karigari fashion. It was all the better.

"Yeah," Yusuke said. "It's not far, but we have to hurry. And we can't let anyone follow us."

"I understand," Sasagawa replied.

They started to head down a less-populated area, near a construction site. It looked like apartments were being built, but obviously they weren't ready for anyone to move into yet.

"Doctor's new hideout is this close to the Mobile Rescue Police Headquarters?" Sasagawa asked, though she was mostly wondering out loud.

"Makes it easier to keep tabs on them, I think," Yusuke replied. "The last one was a lot further away."

"I hope the new one is underneath First Kitchen," Akira said.

"That'd be great," Yusuke replied.

"Umm…" Sasagawa lost interest in their conversation as soon as she saw a bright light a distance ahead, on the other side of the street. As she pointed towards it, the sound of an explosion erupted.

"What is going on?!" Akira wondered.

"Who knows, but we better run," Yusuke said. "Miss, hurry!"

"Right," Sasagawa replied, though she was curious. Was this another attack? It seemed to come from the construction site. Of course, there would be explosives there, but they probably weren't supposed to detonate like that.

Regardless, she started running, only for another blast to go off, this time much closer to the street. Whatever was nearby that wasn't caught up in the flames went flying into the air on impact. This included a nearly empty dumpster which had been to the right of the building. By some freak accident, it was propelled across the street, landing upside-down on top of the spot where Sasagawa, Yusuke and Akira stood.

"Well, this is weird," Yusuke commented.

"Can you lift it?" Sasagawa wondered. Weird was right. They weren't exactly in danger. Well, not unless more explosions went off right where they were standing. Air was even filtering in from beneath, so they weren't going to suffocate. But it was certainly a bit uncomfortable, not to mention the unpleasant smell, even if the actual garbage had fallen out before the dumpster landed. There wasn't much room to stand, so she had to crouch down.

"Trying," Yusuke said. He didn't seem to be able to pull off much more than grunting, however. "Akira, help!"

"If you can't lift it, there's no way I can, Bro," Akira replied.

"That's why I want you to help!" Yusuke argued.

"Yeah, alright," said Akira. He started attempting to lift it as well. But it didn't make a difference. "How much does this thing weigh?" he whined.

"Hey, we'll be fine," Yusuke replied. "I'll just call Doctor, and he can bring over his Drive Head and get us out."

He quickly did so. Akira was standing close, listening in.

"What's the problem this time?" Karigari asked, annoyed. He knew there had to be one. "Miss already left the Mobile Rescue Police Headquarters. Are you having that much trouble finding her?"

"No, we found her," Yusuke said. "But then some buildings blew up and now we're trapped... in a dumpster." He was embarrassed to add the last part, but it would help in their being found. "So can you help us? With the Drive Head, you know?"

Karigari sighed. He thought it idiotic, but at the same time, he had to worry a bit. If there was another disaster, it was likely the fault of his new enemy. Well, that meant the Drive Heads would be launching, and he'd best pick up his subordinates before the Mobile Rescue Police found them.

"Miss is still with you?" Karigari asked. It seemed obvious, but he just had to confirm for himself. "Is she alright?"

"Umm… hang on." Yusuke moved the phone from his ear and turned to Sasagawa. "Hey, are you alright?"

"Yes," she called back.

"She's fine," Yusuke said.

"I heard her," Karigari replied. "Just wait right there." Not that they really had a choice.

Karigari got into his Drive Head, and quickly launched. He knew it probably wasn't the best thing to do, given his injuries, but he wasn't helpless.

'The things I do for my idiots,' he thought to himself.

"He's coming!" Yusuke announced.

"Great!" Sasagawa replied. "Thank you."

As he really was quite close, it didn't take long for Karigari to get there. After locating the offending dumpster, he picked it up and tossed it aside. Rescue workers were starting to arrive at around the same time, but to Karigari's relief, they seemed much more focused on the fires a distance away than the dumpster on the side of the road.

"Drive Head!" Sasagawa exclaimed. Actually being picked up by one of its colorful hands which matched those of Sonic Interceptor and Rescue Backdraft, she was too numb with excitement to even really be able to focus. "Ahhh! This is so cool!"

"Yes," Karigari said. He was glad she could enjoy herself at least. "My Drive Head is the most powerful and advanced of them all, in case you've forgotten."

"Team Drive Head must be coming soon too, right?" Sasagawa asked. She was gleeful for a moment at the prospect of seeing all the Drive Heads, but that only lasted until she saw how disastrous the construction site looked.

"I'm sure they will, but there's no time to sit around here and watch. Try to forget about Drive Head for a while if you can manage," answered Karigari. "For now, we must return to my hideout. Or ex-hideout, as I'll soon be abandoning it."

"I'll put on the TV when we get back." Akira added. "I want to see what happens next too." Naturally, someone from Akasaka TV would be covering the incident, even if it wasn't Sasagawa.

* * *

"Why did you bring me here?" Sasagawa wanted to just look around and admire the hideout. Which was extremely fascinating. But she knew Karigari had something serious to discuss if he'd actually brought her to it.

"I believe you sent me an email yesterday," Karigari replied.

"Yes," Sasagawa replied. She looked at him seriously. "I know you weren't responsible. So what actually happened?!"

"Miss..." he held out his finger. "I'm flattered that you want to help. But at the same time, I'd rather you stay out of this."

She stared at him, confused.

"But why?"

"A number of reasons," Karigari replied. "For one, this enemy has already proven to be quite dangerous. For another, even I can't deny I have a most unsavory history. You are an ally of justice, Miss. For you to defend a criminal, even if you're absolutely right in this case, it simply won't look good in the eyes of the public. Which is a place you always will be."

Sasagawa was about to speak in protest, but Karigari signaled for her to stop.

"However, as a genius who knows all things, I'm well aware that nothing I say will be enough to stop you. Therefore, I'll show you the leads I've found so far."

"Really?!" She smiled at him.

"Yes," said Karigari. "But while we're at it, I hope you'll at least consider my point as well." Futile, but he had to try.

Karigari led Sasagawa to his computer, where he brought up a slideshow of images. Each showed a different person.

"These are possible candidates for the culprit's real identity," he said.

"I see…" Sasagawa was attempting to take it all in as he scrolled through. "There's a lot of them."

"I know that," said Karigari. "And regretfully, he might not be any of them at all. This is how little evidence I currently have. However, this will at least-"

"Doctor!" Akira and Yusuke ran in, looking panicked.

"What's wrong?" he asked, though he regretted asking just as soon as he spoke.

"Something interrupted the broadcast," said Yusuke.


	4. Chapter 4

Ch4-

Karigari and Sasagawa rushed into the other room, both expecting that whatever was on TV had something to do with the unknown enemy. They were correct, but exactly what they saw on screen still came as a shock.

"Doctor, how did you get on TV?" Akira asked.

"That isn't me!" he replied, glaring at his subordinate. Yet, the man on TV looked just like him, down to having the same mask and prosthetic hand. As Karigari had neither of those things for long, his impersonator was quite well informed.

"Greetings to everyone tuned in to Akasaka Television today," the Karigari-lookalike spoke. "If you were watching to see the Drive Heads struggle in vain to rescue those caught up in my latest disaster, I'm sorry for disappointing you. But you can have your bland entertainment back shortly. I won't be long. Now, this broadcast is mostly for the benefit of the Mobile Rescue Police, my arch enemies. I've decided to settle my score with you for good. If you do not disband and destroy all the Drive Heads within 48 hours, I'll simply destroy the entire city. If you decide to resist and fight for this city instead, well… your Drive Heads won't be able to keep up with the sheer level of devastation I have planned, and will be destroyed either way, along with the lives of everyone else. I think the choice is obvious, and I await your answer."

The broadcast ended just as abruptly as it started, returning to the news coverage of the rescue at the construction site.

"Destroy the Drive Heads?!" Sasagawa exclaimed. "This person is horrible!"

"Not only horrible, but aside from mimicking my looks and even voice, his rendition of me is a failure." Karigari was seething.

"But how did he pull that off?" Yusuke asked. "You sure it wasn't you?"

"Yes!" he shouted. "I am completely sure." He scowled. "As for how he pulled it off, he clearly has access to a great deal of technology. Projecting this image of me is far from the most complicated thing he's managed to do."

"Umm…" Sasagawa realized something just then. "I have to get back to the station right away. If he hijacked the broadcast, then maybe I can find something there."

Maybe he was even there, although that was probably hoping for too much. But at the very least, the tech department could track where the interference came from. One way or another, chances of finding Karigari's impersonator were high.

"Dr. Karigari, thanks for inviting me to your secret hideout. I hope I can see the new one as well." Sasagawa rushed out the secret exit.

"Doctor, are you going to follow her?" Yusuke asked.

"No," Karigari replied. "I wish I could, but my appearing anywhere near the Akasaka TV building now will only create further difficulties. What an irritating situation this has become."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Akira replied.

"I thought to contact the Mobile Rescue Police, however that can wait," Karigari said, though he was mostly thinking out loud. "It should be simple for me to track the broadcast signals from here. Obviously, he didn't go to the Akasaka TV station personally. It was a video he played, not his true face. He must have hacked the signal elsewhere, but I'll find his true location myself. Then, I can defeat him before he gets the chance to destroy the city."

"Doctor, you're awesome!" Akira said.

"Yes, I know," he replied. "Now be quiet and let me work."

* * *

"Sasagawa, you're back." A male co-worker approached her almost as soon as she entered the building.

"Yes," she said. "I'm sorry I took so long. However, I saw the broadcast while I was out. Do you know anything about it?"

"There are already some people investigating," the man replied. "But there's no sign of Dr. Karigari anywhere in the building. Most likely, he hacked this place from somewhere remotely." He scratched his head. It was all too technical for him. "This on top of the incident still not being cleared up. It was a real mess this time. But the crew we sent out there did get back to us, and they're all safe. They should be back pretty soon, I think."

"I'm glad they're safe," Sasagawa replied. She assumed Unai must have gone out. "Thank you."

Well, the incident was something she could worry about later. Now, her priority was to see how the investigations were going. She headed to one of the control rooms, where behind the scenes work was done. Usually she never had to worry about that, but it wasn't like she was prohibited from going inside.

* * *

"What have you found?"

"Oh…" Her entrance surprised the small crew who had been working in there. "You mean, concerning Dr. Karigari?"

"Yes," she said. This person was just like the man before. She wished everyone would stop saying that it was Karigari's doing. But of course, everyone still had no reason to believe otherwise.

"Well we have some good news," he replied. "We've just about tracked the location the broadcast was sent from."

"Where?" Sasagawa asked, perking up.

"By the radio towers a few miles east of here," he answered. "That could very well be where he's hiding. We're going to inform the police and-"

"Thank you," Sasagawa interrupted. "I'm heading there as well."

"Y-you really don't have to," the man replied, surprised by her decision.

Sasagawa disagreed, of course. Borrowing one of the news vans which wasn't in use at the time, she rushed out to the radio towers.

When Sasagawa finally arrived, there didn't seem to be much going on. There were a few police cars parked there, the officers wandering around. It wasn't the Mobile Rescue Police, though.

'Was I too late?' she wondered. Hopefully not, but it definitely didn't look like anything suspicious was going on. Not that she even knew what the enemy really looked like. What was she expecting, really? Someone to be standing there with a big sign reading 'I'm Karigari'? Well, the real Karigari was one for theatrics, but this person wasn't the real Karigari.

She may not have seen Karigari, but someone unexpected did appear just then. Suddenly, Gou Kurumada was there, along with the large black-and-white dog which lived at the Mobile Rescue Police headquarters.

"What are you doing here?" Sasagawa asked.

"Oh… I-I wanted to see if anything was here," Gou stuttered. He wasn't expecting to run into Sasagawa either, and knew he had to be careful what he said around her. Not that he had any personal objection to revealing his true identity. But he couldn't help but imagine that Shinmon was secretly watching, and would stop him even if he tried. "My dad found out that Karigari's broadcast might have came from here. Well… not Karigari, but…"

"I know," Sasagawa said. "But there doesn't seem to be anyone here."

"I brought Axel with me," Gou replied, confidently. "I'm sure he could sniff something out."

Axel, however, seemed very uninterested in the place, and was just lazing on the floor.

"Perhaps," Sasagawa replied, though she didn't really believe it. She thought it nice that Gou came out, seemingly to try and help, but still, he was just a child. Exactly how helpful he could be, she wasn't sure. "Does your dad know you're here?" She wondered.

"Well… kinda," Gou replied. "We're not allowed to lau… I mean, the Drive Heads aren't allowed to launch yet, and everyone's kinda tense right now. So I thought I would go out and do something."

"I see," Sasagawa replied. Under normal circumstances, she'd try and pry for more information about the Drive Heads from him, but she had bigger things to worry about now.

"You know, Sasagawa-san," Gou spoke. "During a big incident not long ago, the Drive Heads were in a real pinch. But Karigari helped us. That was the first time I actually met him. And, he's really pretty weird and made all kinds of problems for us, but I think he's not really a bad person. He's almost kind of cool... Except for when he destroyed Sonic Interceptor." Gou was still a little bitter over that.

"Sonic…" Sasagawa was also a little depressed, hearing that name. "But, then we got Cyclone Interceptor, which is even cooler. And that new Force Field Mode!"

"Yeah, about that…" Gou paused. That was of course exactly what he'd been talking about. The mode Karigari designed for Cyclone. Also a secret. He had to change the subject, slightly. "You also believe in Karigari?"

"Of course," said Sasagawa. "Some time ago, he saved my life. Well, that's not the reason. When I first met him, I thought he was a terrible person. And not just because he destroyed my Sonic. I felt the same way everyone feels about him now. I was surprised that he wasn't at all like I imagined. He's an incredible person, capable of all sorts of impossible things, but he's also very… human. He's awkward and gentle and even vulnerable. It's strange, when you think about the face he reveals in public. I don't think that's false either… but it's not all there is to him. I guess, most people wouldn't understand." Certainly not now, when he was threatening to destroy the city and already caused two horrible incidents.

"A lot of people are different than you might expect," Gou said. Like Interceptor's driver, for one. Everyone imagined he was someone mature and larger-than-life, not that he was a normal grade-schooler. It got kind of annoying.

"That's true," Sasagawa replied. Gou might have just been a kid, but he wasn't a foolish one, she realized. It was no wonder he helped out the Mobile Rescue Police. And he was an Interceptor fan as well. That also won points with her. "Umm…"

Her thought was interrupted though when her phone suddenly rang. It was a call from the station, so she couldn't ignore it.

"There was another incident?" That had her worried already. What could it be this time? "Okay, I understand. I'll head right there." There was nothing to find where she was now. She might as well go and take care of work.

"An incident?" Gou obviously overheard her. That was strange to him. If Akasaka TV found out and had gotten to the point of sending out a crew, wouldn't he have also gotten a call on the Drive Gear to launch? Even if they were being cautious concerning the investigation, they couldn't sit still in a true incident. As Sasagawa had already headed back to the news van and wasn't paying attention, Gou pulled the Drive Gear out from his pocket. It wasn't ringing or indicating any sort of trouble. Well, if there was something wrong, he had to head back to base anyway. Everyone knew there that he was Cyclone's driver and would be looking for him.

* * *

"Doctor, you still haven't found him?" Yusuke wondered.

"Although not on my level, he's proving to be quite the intelligent foe," Karigari replied. "It didn't take me long at all to track back the signals to the radio towers. However, that was a mere decoy, likely to lure the police down the wrong path."

"Well, the police are stupid anyway," Akira replied.

"I'd rather not have them interfering," Karigari said. "The good thing is that now I'm closing in on the true location his broadcast was sent from. Then I'll have him all to myself."

* * *

Upon reaching the designated area, Sasagawa frowned.

'This is the scene of a disaster?' she wondered. It certainly didn't appear that way. There was no fire, not even smoke. No police or emergency vehicles there. Definitely no Drive Heads, although they simply might not have arrived yet. She wasn't all that far from the location, so she might have gotten there first, and she remembered what Gou had said about the Drive Heads not being permitted to launch for the time being. Though she hoped they would change that stance if there was a genuine disaster.

That being said, there was no disaster to be seen.

'Maybe the coordinates were wrong?' she wondered. The place where she ended up was a rather run-down area, full of abandoned buildings. Not a place where people lived, or would come to unless they absolutely had to pass through. If a disaster were to happen here, could it really be anything significant? Yes, it had to be some mistake.

'I'll have to call them again and find out,' Sasagawa decided. Leaning against the walls of one of the buildings, she took out her phone and began to dial.

Just as she was about to hit send, someone grabbed her wrist, pulling her close to them. The phone dropped from her hands.

Sasagawa tried to pull away, but the grip was tight, sharp nails digging in. Her arm was twisted behind her back, and another hand covered her mouth. She couldn't even get a good look at the person, who was behind her. She was already panicking, regardless.

"So we finally meet," the person said. His voice wasn't anyone's she recognized. "As it happens, the former Karigari is this close to uncovering my whereabouts. I can't have him interfering, and I don't want you getting in my way either. Why not kill two birds with one stone, I thought."

'The former Karigari…' Sasagawa had already wondered, but hearing those words, she knew exactly whom she was dealing with. Then, it all made sense. He could clearly disguise his voice and hack signals. He was the one who sent her the call. Well, this wasn't the way she hoped to meet him, but she finally had found the enemy as planned. The only hard part now would be getting away from him in order to expose the truth.

* * *

Karigari smirked. He'd figured it out. Completely. However, he wasn't given the chance to celebrate at all.

There was a bing from his computer. An encrypted e-mail was sent to Karigari.

'It must be from him,' Karigari realized. Despite using the best stealth methods he knew, Karigari wasn't completely surprised that his foe was capable of tracking his tracking. Well, that just meant he'd have to move faster. He opened up the e-mail, just to see what it said.

 _'To the former Karigari_

 _By now, I'm certain you must have found my location. I must admit you have gall to even try and oppose me, when you've done nothing of note for so long. I'd consider it a compliment of my efforts if I wasn't aware of the legitimate threat you pose to me. However, I'd like to propose a new term with you in my fabulous game. You'll stop right now, and come nowhere near the location you found. Aside from the whole city, who already rest in the palm of my hands, I've taken one special hostage. Someone of value to you. If you care for her survival, you'll follow this simple new rule._

 _Signed, the true Karigari.'_

Karigari smashed the laptop onto the floor with his metallic hand. It probably broke, but he didn't care. Despite no name being mentioned, there was only one person the message could have been referring to.

"Posing as me was one thing, but threatening Miss is inexcusable!"

"Doctor! What's going on?!" Naturally, Akira and Yusuke heard crashing and yelling and were there behind him in seconds.

"My imposter has struck again." Karigari looked outright murderous. "This time Miss' life is on the line."


	5. Chapter 5

Ch5-

Karigari was frantically trying to think up a new plan, but was seething so much in the process that his subordinates doubted he was coming up with anything.

"You know where he's hiding, right?" Akira asked. "So let's just go there anyway. The Drive Head can definitely beat him!"

"You idiot, were you even paying any attention?!" Karigari shouted. He had shown them the message already. "He'll kill Miss if I do." Even if he stayed away, he wasn't sure if his enemy would hold up his end of the bargain. This man clearly had no qualms with killing innocents. Even if he didn't outright murder Miss, that didn't mean he wouldn't harm her at all. Maybe he had already. How would Karigari know? Just imagining what his imposter might be doing wasn't helping his composure.

"Hey, Doctor, look at this!" Yusuke pointed to his computer which was still on the floor. Apparently, it wasn't quite broken. "You have an incoming transmission. It's from the Mobile Rescue Police."

"Answer it," he replied immediately. Although his first instinct was annoyance, an idea suddenly came to Karigari's head. He needed to speak with Kurumada after all.

"Karigari, we need to talk right now," Kuruamda said.

"I'm aware of that," Karigari replied. He bent down to pick up the laptop and put it back on the desk. "I didn't think you would call me just for pleasure."

Despite being willing to joke, there was no humor in Karigari's expression. Rather, it was obvious to Kurumada how not-calm he was. It was actually an unusual site to see.

"We thought that we tracked down your imposter's location," Kurumada spoke. He wasn't going to ask right away what had Karigari so worked up. "However, that location was obviously just a decoy. My son went there on his own, and didn't find anything out of the ordinary. But then, something strange happened."

"Rather than telling me what I already know, get to the point!" Karigari replied.

"He met Sasagawa there," Kurumada replied. "She left somewhere, saying that there was some sort of disaster call. But no such thing happened."

"Yes, I know that as well," Karigari answered, annoyed. Well, not that she met Gou, or about the fake call, but that was irrelevant. He knew where it led to. "Miss has been kidnapped by the real enemy. Despite the fact that I found his location, rather than falling for that idiotic decoy like you did, I can't even go there now to face him, or he'll kill her."

Kurumada gasped. But finally, it all made sense.

"I didn't realize you were capable of loving anyone other than yourself, Karigari," he said.

"There's a lot to love about me," Karigari replied. "And honestly this is none of your business!" He glared at Kurumada. "However, for once I require your help. I'll send you the enemy's location. Then, I want you to send my Cyclone Interceptor there to keep him busy. Its Force Field Mode is so powerful that you won't have to worry about any harm befalling your son. After that, I can-"

"Wait just a minute!" Kurumada interrupted. "Cyclone Interceptor is mine! You shouldn't have tampered with it to begin with, but don't go claiming it's yours to order around."

"Fine, let's call it _our_ Cyclone Interceptor if you like," Karigari replied. "Although my upgrades outweigh the bland frame you designed in effectiveness and style, so I'm being generous to give you any credit at all."

"Enough!" Kurumada snapped. "I'll do it, so that you can rescue Sasagawa. We don't have much time left to stop this madman anyway." He shook his head, exasperated. "I never thought a day would come when someone would want to imitate you, and it had to be someone even more unlikeable than the original on top of that."

* * *

"Ugh…" Sasagawa had a massive headache, but at least she was conscious, and gradually becoming aware of everything that transpired. This included the fact that she was currently chained to a wall somewhere.

Much to her frustration, she couldn't move very far, but she knew that the impersonator who had taken her captive had to be somewhere nearby. She wanted to speak with him immediately.

"Show yourself, you coward!" she shouted. She would have called him by name, but didn't know what that was. Certainly not 'Karigari'. She continued struggling with the chains as she waited for an answer, which was still proving futile.

"You can call me whatever insult you like, but I only choose tactics which are proven to give results."

The man stepped into the room, looking down at Sasagawa smugly. He didn't look at all like Karigari in person. His physique was completely different. Darker hair and eyes. More muscular. Younger too.

"I knew you weren't really Karigari!" Sasagawa declared.

"Not as you know him," he answered. "But let's imagine that Karigari is not a man, but a title. When one Karigari becomes insufficient, a new one emerges. And it was up to me to take up that mantle."

"What do you mean?" That was the most nonsensical reply Sasagawa had ever heard, and she still hadn't quite gotten used to all of Karigari's oddities.

"The old Karigari no longer lives up to expectations," the man answered. "Once a man who made brilliant attacks against the Mobile Rescue Police, being able to acquire anything he wanted with his wit alone, he's since fallen into obscurity. Has he gone soft? Did he reach his breaking point and choose to retire in shame? I don't know for sure, but I know that the man I admired betrayed me. That's why I had no choice but to become the new Karigari, and assert my might over this city once and for all."

"Betrayed you…?" Sasagawa was too stunned to even properly think of an argument. "But you… why would you want any of this?"

"Someone like you wouldn't understand," he replied. "A goody-two-shoes, who admires Karigari because he's 'human', you said? Yes, I overheard your little conversation thanks to cameras at the radio towers. That was what prompted me to stop you in your tracks. You might have been the problem all along! You've corrupted him!"

"Corrupted?! Stop saying such absurd things! I haven't done a thing to Dr. Karigari at all."

"It pains me that you think that," the man answered. He stared at her condescendingly. "You who the old Karigari held so closely in his heart. There was never room for him to love something else besides his revenge. But you don't even realize it."

'Love?' The word echoed in her head. 'You think that he loves me?'

It clicked more than she ever expected. It was like floodgates opening. Everything, from the near confession on the day they met, to the times he saved her, to the way he blushed and stumbled around her. If it were true, that he loved her, it all began to synch. But he'd never said so. Not directly. And somewhere inside, she realized, she never wanted him to say it. Because if he did, she couldn't say no. No matter what, it went against everything she stood for to love a criminal. But she had begun to cherish Karigari more than she even realized.

"What? Nothing to say to that?" The man was clearly irritated as Sasagawa could do nothing more than stare at him in shock.

Sasagawa glared at him. His snapping at her brought her back to her senses. She couldn't worry now about whether or not Karigari loved her. Her concern was dealing with his disgusting imposter.

"You're wrong!" she shouted. "About everything! You don't know a thing about Dr. Karigari. Otherwise, you wouldn't be so horrible!"

"I wonder…" the man bent down, studying Sasagawa closely for a moment. "What is it that he sees in you? Perhaps I should have a taste and find out."

Sasagawa cringed. She would have hit him if she could.

"On second thought, I wouldn't want to taint myself on you." He threw out his fist, which connected with Sasagawa's face. "I should just kill you now." He struck her once more.

"I thought… you needed a hostage…" Sasagawa was writhing in pain, blood dripping from her lips. But that was not going to stop her from arguing. "If you knew the real Karigari… you would know he keeps his word."

"I told you. I am the real Karigari!" he replied, angrily. "And I've changed my mind on one more thing. I think I'll just destroy the city now. Then we'll see what the Mobile Rescue Police think."

"What?!" But he left the room, headed to a control panel outside, and there wasn't a thing Sasagawa could do but gape.

* * *

Karigari and his subordinates had already taken off in their Drive Head. However, he waited, tensely, for a brief period in order to give Cyclone Interceptor enough of a head start. He hoped Interceptor was close by now.

"Doctor, look outside!" Yusuke and Akira had been monitoring the cameras from the front seat. They hadn't expected to see the sky suddenly turn black above them. There was a thick layer of dark clouds. Almost instantaneously, it was pouring rain. Lighting flashed around them a distance away and thunder rumbled.

"What is he doing?!" Karigari exclaimed. It had to be another attack. He said he'd wait 48 hours to destroy the city. It wasn't even 24. Maybe this storm alone wouldn't be enough to destroy a city, but he'd certainly made a surprise move.

What didn't surprise Karigari is that the screen within his Drive Head started flashing moments later.

"Go on and answer it," he said, knowing it would be the Mobile Rescue Police.

"Got it!" Akira said.

"Karigari!" Kurumada's face came up on screen. Saionji was there with him this time.

"There's a storm. I know," Karigari replied, annoyed.

"It's more than that," Saionji answered. "Because of that lightning, fires are starting all across the city."

"We're getting calls about disasters left and right," Kurumada added. "It's not just the lightning. There's flooding too, and earthquakes. You'd better hurry."

"Tell that to your son," Karigari replied. "And don't you have the Drive Heads to take care of that?"

"Only three of them, because Cyclone Interceptor is helping you," Kurumada answered, annoyed. "We have the Transporters as well, and Support Vehicles, but if this gets too much worse, we won't be able to keep up."

"You're useless as ever," Karigari replied. "Very well then. I'll send Cyclone Interceptor over to help you just as soon as I can get to Miss."

He ended the transmission, irritated.

"This is really bad!" Yusuke exclaimed.

"I know that," Karigari replied. "You don't have to state the obvious." The enemy was clearly erratic. That behavior made him unpredictable. It didn't matter that Karigari was a genius in this case. For the first time, he feared that he might actually fail. But for Miss' sake, he couldn't.

* * *

Cyclone Interceptor flew towards the abandoned building where the imposter was hiding. The exact place the coordinates indicated.

'This must be it,' Gou thought to himself. It was definitely spooky enough for a bad guy to hide in, he noted.

"Huh?!" Just as he was about to land, a tornado blew out in front of his Drive Head. It started pelting him with sand, and anything else it could pick up. Of course, Gou flew out of the way. But the tornado simply started to pursue him.

"Okay then," he decided. "I'll try the Karigari badge." It was still pretty awkward to use that Drive Badge, but if there was one thing he needed now, it was the Force Field Mode.

"That tornado isn't going to stop me!" he declared. "Hyper Dash!" He flew head on, right through it. Cyclone was protected. Pulling out the Guide Light Saber, Gou slashed at the twister, causing it to break up. He sighed with relief.

Nonetheless, Gou wasn't in the clear yet.

"Now what?!" He picked up a large and fast moving object on radar. But it wasn't another tornado. "That's…"

The object was Karigari's Drive Head. Only, it came from the wrong direction. Karigari wasn't even supposed to be there yet.

"Ahhh!" The machine flew at full force into Cyclone. Gou did recover quickly, but only quick enough that he had to dodge another incoming blow from the Drive Head's fists.

"Are you the fake Karigari?" Gou asked.

"I am the true Karigari!" he answered. He threw out another punch, only for Cyclone Interceptor to catch his fist this time.

"Whoever you are, I'll stop you!"

* * *

"No way!" As Karigari's Drive Head made its way to the scene as well, Akira and Yusuke were gaping at the machine fighting Cyclone Interceptor.

"That looks just like your Drive Head."

Karigari scowled.

"If he's copying me, I suppose he has to be thorough enough to copy my Drive Head as well. I'll show him that his is no match for the original. But that can wait!"

Karigari landed his Drive Head outside the building. If his imposter noticed him, it didn't really matter, Karigari decided. As long as he was outside fighting Cyclone Interceptor, like Karigari hoped, he couldn't do anything to Miss. Well, that was as long as she was still alive, but he tried his best not to think of the worst case scenario.

Karigari and his subordinates entered the building on foot. They found themselves in a large and complex-looking control room. Already, Karigari was guessing what everything in the room did, just from sight.

He took a seat in front of one of the monitors, and began to scan through images taken by the security cameras. He froze when he found Sasagawa, alive but bleeding. There were no words to describe how eager he was to make this enemy pay.

* * *

"Huh?" Sasagawa heard a click, and to her surprise, the cuffs around her hands opened, and fell to the ground. After that, the door to the room she was in opened. Still, she stayed back against the wall cautiously, not knowing what might enter the room now. Ever since the enemy had disappeared somewhere, she was tense, waiting for him to come back.

"Miss!" Sasagawa could hardly believe her eyes, when she saw Karigari standing there, along with his subordinates. Somehow, he'd found her.

"Dr. Karigari!" Forgetting all the pain she was in, she rose from the ground, running to Karigari and wrapping her arms around him tightly. Which he found incredibly surprising and awkward, but he couldn't bring himself to stop her. "What happened to the enemy?" Sasaagawa asked, still unwilling to let go. "Did you defeat him?"

"Not yet," Karigari replied. "Right now, my top priority was rescuing you." Relieved as he was that Sasagawa was safe, Karigari couldn't smile, however. He looked furious. "But now that I've accomplished that, I'll make him regret everything he's done."


	6. Chapter 6

Ch6-

It was easy enough for the four of them to make it outside undetected, to where Karigari's Drive Head was. Karigari was confident that _his_ Cyclone Interceptor would still be holding up just fine, even against a copy of his personal Drive Head.

"Get inside," Karigari instructed. Regardless of Gou's status, there was still no time to waste. The command was directed to his subordinates, but he let Sasagawa come inside the Viper as well. Normally he wouldn't want to put her in danger, but given the current circumstances, what was safer than close by? He was confident that he wasn't going to lose anyway.

* * *

"I really get to ride in your Drive Head?!" Despite the fact that she still looked pained, Sasagawa was brimming with excitement. This unpleasant day was starting to all be worth it.

"Yes," Karigari replied. The machine began to lift off from the ground. "However, we're up against a copy of my Drive Head. This enemy is annoyingly thorough."

"How could he copy a Drive Head and use it for evil?!" Sasagawa exclaimed. "That's unforgiveable!"

"If you've forgotten, my Drive Head began as a copy as well," Karigari replied. Though of course, he'd modified it into something far superior, and hadn't used it for anything 'evil'. Nor was he the one who made it in the first place. That was the Evil AI's doing. Still, he found the situation a little ironic.

"It's Cyclone Interceptor!" Sasagawa had completely lost interest In the previous subject, seeing that the copy was facing off against her beloved Drive Head. "It's even using that sparkling new Force Field Mode this time!"

Gou was relieved to see Karigari's Drive Head. He'd been managing just fine, thanks to the Force Field Mode. But he knew that this meant Karigari had succeeded in rescuing Sasagawa.

"Cyclone Interceptor's Driver!" Karigari called. "Leave this to me!"

"But…" His command surprised Gou.

"There are more disasters to take care of all around the city," Karigari replied. "That's what the Mobile Rescue Police was created for. Besides, I have a personal score to settle with this low-grade fraud!"

"Understood," Gou said. He could relate, in a way, remembering back to the battle against the fake Drive Heads. One had even copied Sonic Interceptor. That was depressing and insulting at the same time.

Gou took off towards the direction of the intense storm clouds.

"So the old Karigari broke his end of the deal and came here pathetically after all…" The impersonator's voice sounded bitter.

"My end of the deal?!" Karigari shouted. "That's almost humorous, coming from the one who claimed he'd wait 48 hours before destroying the city, not to mention what you've done to Miss, despite the fact that I did as you instructed until now."

In a rage, he flew down at the copy of his Drive Head, pushing it several feet with a single punch.

"I'm only just getting warmed up!" he declared, throwing another hit before he even got the chance to recover. "One plus of having a metal hand is that it doesn't hurt as much to do this."

* * *

A safe distance away from the fighting, personnel from Akasaka TV had been at the scene, covering Cyclone Interceptor's fight with what was perceived to be Karigari's Drive Head. Because Sasagawa's whereabouts had been unknown, Unai had been sent there instead.

"It seems that Cyclone Interceptor retreated," Unai said. "Now, a new Drive Head is here, which looks identical to the one that Interceptor was fighting against. It may be an ally. But where did it come from and who is inside?"

* * *

Sasagawa took notice of Unai's presence.

'If this is all being broadcast… it's also a chance!' She couldn't help Karigari in his fight, but there was still _something_ she could do.

She reached over and opened the Viper's door.

"Unai!" she called, as she stepped out onto the platform where the Viper was placed. "I'm inside the real Dr. Karigari's Drive Head!"

It was quite turbulent, the Drive Head still in the midst of fighting, and she quickly realized she had to hold on to the frame tight to not fall off.

"Sempai?!" Unai was stunned, but it was unmistakably Sasagawa's figure she saw up on the machine. Only, she looked bloodied, which only served to worry Unai.

"Miss, get back in the Drive Head right now!" Karigari shouted. He wanted to say that he couldn't believe the idiocy of her actions, but he'd long since acknowledged that she was reckless enough to pull something like this. Nonetheless, he was already having a massive panic attack.

Yusuke reached over and pulled her inside, then shut the door.

"You can use the speakers," Akira said, switching them on.

Karigari was glad that his subordinates could actually be useful now and then.

"Uh… yes. Sorry," Sasagawa said. She was a bit flustered. Still, she needed to reveal herself. That was the only way to get the truth across. Well, there was still more she needed to say.

"Please listen!" she announced. "I'm here because I was rescued by Dr. Karigari. I was taken hostage by this enemy he's fighting now. He may have the same Drive Head, but it's nowhere near as powerful or cool as the original version! Umm… What I mean is, his Drive Head looks the same because he's been impersonating the real Dr. Karigari this entire time!"

Though she was trying to speak, they were still in the middle of a fight, and the enemy wasn't going to relent. He rammed at Karigari's Drive Head. Karigari attempted to block, which reduced the impact, but his frame was still knocked back a little. This of course shook up everyone who was inside as well.

Karigari was irritated, and retaliated with another sequence of punches.

"The real Dr. Karigari will win!" Sasagawa declared, standing up. "He has to. Because he would never do what this person did. He saved the world when that mysterious energy from the Tower of Babel emerged! I'm sure he even helped to defeat that giant monster that appeared recently!" That had to be what Gou meant, about that incident when Karigari helped them. She was confident enough to assert it now.

Karigari looked to her in surprise. He couldn't imagine how she'd gotten that information. Or was she simply guessing? Well, he'd have to question that later.

"Dr. Karigari is…" She was panting, sweat dripping from her forehead.

"That's enough, Miss," Karigari said. "You've made a fine point."

She nodded, and sat down. She wasn't quite done, but all that she'd said was recorded. She was sure that lots of people were watching the broadcast. Or would at least watch it later when the city was at peace. Team Drive Head would definitely save everyone. She couldn't worry about that.

Karigari made no delay to get in another hit, this one harder than the last. Metal cracked in the enemy's frame, followed by sparks igniting for a moment.

"While we're on the air, I, The Genuine Number One Genius Scientist in Space Dr. Karigari would also like to provide an important message," he spoke. "Despite what Miss said, all of which is correct, I would like to assert that I am not some pure-blooded hero like Cyclone Interceptor. I've plotted many things against your beloved, valiant Mobile Rescue Police, using any tactic necessary to maintain my already tremendous advantage over them. And my objective is always to be superior to them. However, do not confuse me for this imposter, who has done many horrible things, the most unforgiveable being hurting Miss. If you wish to blame me for every one of his crimes besides that, I'll be quite irritated but can live with it. But let it be known that I would never harm her, as I am The Genius Scientist Who Loves Miss!"

He was ready to die from embarrassment for actually stating as much, but once he started, Karigari couldn't help himself.

"Dr. Karigari… You really…" Although she still lacked the strength to be completely shocked, Sasagawa looked up at Karigari in amazement.

Karigari threw another punch at the enemy's frame for extra measure. It lie on the ground, flailing and firing off even more sparks.

"You can worry about rejecting me later, or just forget I said that if you prefer," Karigari replied. He desperately hoped she would choose the second option. "But now, we have more pressing things to complete."

"Umm…" She was genuinely confused by his answer, and wanted to tell him he was wrong. But she knew he was right about one thing. The only thing that mattered right now was defeating the enemy.

"You…" the man was struggling to get up, to make another attack. "You'll regret this!"

"No, I don't think I regret it at all," Karigari replied, smugly. "Right now, you're helpless before me. What will you do? Lay there writhing as I continue to beat you into oblivion? Or perhaps you'll eject the Viper and try to flee, to pointlessly oppose me another day and be swiftly defeated once again."

"You really think that I'll let you win?" the fake Karigari replied.

"Oh, I don't think you'll _let_ me win. I just think I'll win," said Karigari. "I think I've won already, as usual."

"Then you're wrong!" the imposter said. "To lose to the man who betrayed me… I would never accept it! There may be no way for me to defeat you like this. But I can still take you out with me!"

"What?" Karigari was actually a bit concerned for once. His enemy could have been bluffing, but there was also a very real chance he had something else in store that he'd yet to reveal. And if Karigari was alone in his Drive Head, he'd be fine with that. But now he was with the people he wanted to protect more than anything.

"It's too late for you," the imposter spoke. "This is the end of the legacy of Karigari." Hitting a switch from within his own Viper, his Drive Head exploded, bringing up a cloud of fire and dust in its wake.

Karigari cringed, and could tell that his allies looked to be just as panicked. But there was no time to move far enough away.

In the nick of time, a glowing blue frame swooped in from above. Karigari's Drive Head was pushed aside, the other machine being hit directly by the blast.

"Cyclone Interceptor!" Sasagawa realized. She could hardly believe it.

"The Force Field Mode!" Karigari exclaimed. His mode!

Cyclone Interceptor seemed to be a bit banged up when the smoke cleared. There were dents and scratches. But the Karigari badge had once again protected it from taking any serious damage. The same could not be said for the duplicate of Karigari's Drive Head, which was a pile of burnt fragments, barely recognizable as the former frame of a Walker Vehicle.

"Are you guys okay?" Gou asked.

"Naturally," Karigari replied. Much as he was shocked by Interceptor's entrance, he was terribly proud of his adjustments for saving his and everyone's life there.

"Thank you, Cyclone Interceptor!" Sasagawa cheered. "You saved the day again!"

"What are you doing here?" Karigari asked. "I told you to go and rescue the people in the city!" Karigari was well aware that defeating his imposter in battle wasn't going to stop the damage the man had already set into motion.

"Rescue complete!" Gou replied proudly. "We were able to shut down his device too!"

Not sure whether to be relieved or annoyed, Karigari turned back towards the building which his imposter had been using as a base.

"Doctor, we're getting another call from the Mobile Rescue Police," Yusuke said.

"Fine," Karigari replied. That would at least clear things up, though he already was beginning to work it out in his head.

Kurumada came up on screen, and he was together with his two mechanics, Izawa and Isurugi.

"So you thought to interfere as well," Karigari said, glaring at him.

"Is that what you're going to call it?" Kurumada replied. "Don't think I was going to use the coordinates you sent us just to send out Cyclone Interceptor to be your decoy."

"I'm a professional at saving the world. I didn't need your help, Kurumada," Karigari replied.

"Clearly you did, or you would have been blown to pieces out there," Kurumada said.

"No, that was Cyclone Interceptor's doing which saved me. And by default, my doing," Karigari argued. He'd forgotten about keeping the fact that he'd modified Interceptor a secret when he was in the heat of an argument with his greatest rival.

"Yeah, then you better be willing to pay for Cyclone Interceptor's repairs, because it didn't come out of that unscathed, even with your lousy upgrades."

"Even better, I'll repair it personally," Karigari said. "Cyclone Interceptor is mine, after all."

"I won't let you lay a hand on my Cyclone Interceptor!" Kurumada argued. "And I think I'll remove your upgrades while I'm at it."

Sasagawa was listening to the two silently, mostly baffled rather than being able to properly follow their conversation, but she had to step in.

"Cyclone Interceptor is mine!" she declared.

"Umm… no, it's mine," Gou said. Well, he knew no one was paying any attention to him. But the fact still stood.

"Well, it looks like the enemy, who apparently wasn't Dr. Karigari after all was defeated," Unai announced. "The Drive Heads have once again saved the day. This is Risa Unai, signing out." Regardless, the situation still somehow seemed to be a warzone. She was going to have to get Sasagawa to explain later

* * *

"You two." Karigari looked at his subordinates with a stern expression. They were back in their hideout, a week having passed since the defeat of Karigari's impersonator.

"Yes?" they replied, looking concerned.

"Today, you are under no circumstances allowed to follow me or pester me, short of any emergency suddenly arising. And it better be such a large scale crisis that the Mobile Rescue Police can't handle it on their own."

He wasn't entirely optimistic enough to believe that wouldn't happen.

"Yeah, we know," Yusuke said. "Who wants to go to a boring steak house anyway?"

"I heard this one is really good though, Bro," Akira replied.

Karigari was still glaring at them murderously.

"I know, I know," Akira said. "You're going with Miss on a date."

"We won't interfere," Yusuke assured.

"It's not as big a deal as it sounds," Karigari said, now looking far more nervous than angry. "Miss wanted to go anyway, to find out all the important secrets the Mobile Rescue Police were hiding."

"Of course it's a big deal," Yusuke replied. "She didn't reject you. That means she really wants to go out with you."

"She never said yes either," Karigari replied.

"Yeah, but she was barely conscious. Can you blame her?" Akira asked.

After the incident, Sasagawa was taken to the hospital. She had corresponded with Karigari since, making arrangements with him to go out together to the steak house as they'd previously discussed, but they'd only spoken via e-mail since.

"Look! She's here." Security cameras indicated that someone was outside the hideout.

Karigari was both excited and terrified. However, he opened the secret passageway so that she could come inside.

"Dr. Karigari!" She looked radiant, smiling as soon as she saw him.

"Miss… you really came?" Karigari was actually having difficulty processing that.

"Hm?" She tilted her head, studying him. "Of course. I've been looking forward to this all week." She approached him awkwardly taking his hand in hers. The one which was made of flesh, though she found the metal one to be a little cooler. "You know, umm… I didn't actually forget about what you said the other day."

"Of course not," Karigari replied. Well, it would be pretty hard to forget, he thought, but he had to get his hopes up a little, if she wasn't going to answer.

"I never imagined I would get to go to a secret hideout before the first date!" she replied. "This really is the coolest! Hey, can we take the Drive Head to the steak house? Or is that too impractical?"

"Yes, it's absolutely impractical," Karigari replied. But he was in too good a mood to say no. "Why not?'


End file.
